Alternatives - best options

mrc70

Hi All,

Please point me to the right thread, if this was discussed before.

The only alternative that I have is PAUDX and I am not sure whether we can consider it as one.
(JFYI - I have a bit exposure to commodities but not to Real Estate). I am wondering, if there are any better alternatives to PAUDX in your opinion. Agree that its recent performance also made me to think. We have discussed here about various alternatve funds including Scott suggested Whitebox fund.

Could you please let me know your high convinction alternate funds ?
Thanks!

scott

Pimco L/S has done exceptionally well this year. As I've said previously though, given the concentrated nature of this fund, I think you may see somewhat inconsistent performance over time. Still, it's an interesting L/S fund and has outperformed the S & P 500 this year - it also barely lost anything (it went pretty much entirely to cash/cash equivalents) in 2008 when it was still a hedge fund.

Whitebox is another option and I continue to particularly like Marketfield, although the no load original shares are no longer open to new shareholders.

RGHIX has done well this year, too.

MikeM

For myself, I moved 1/2 my PAUIX and put it in RGHIX over the last couple months. What I was most impressed with and has nothing to do with the funds managing philosophy, was that much of the funds EUM was made up of the managers and the managers family's money. And although it has a short record as a mutual fund, the managers are long term successful hedge fund managers.

Two very different strategies I believe, but PAUIX, to me, is a glorified bond fund that plays special games with derivatives and over weights EM bonds. I think it showed what it will do in a downward bond market - it hasn't done well. Actually, I have to confess, there is something about the PIMCO bond games that I've never been totally comfortable with.

Bitzer

After reading about PAUIX in this forum, I purchased some this past December. At one point, I was hoping that PIMCO could become a "one stop shopping" fund source for me, as much as any one fund family could be. Over the past eight months or so, PAUIX has really dug itself into a hole...not sure what to do. I'm becoming somewhat disenchanted with PIMCO's "hocus pocus" in many of their funds (derivative strategies, etc.) and rockstar mentality where many of the rockstars (e.g. Gross and Arnott) seem to be making some poor calls lately.

VintageFreak

I have a small standal one "leftover" IRA. I own PGMDX and PAUDX in it. As an aside why individual investors keep using PAUIX ticker instead of PAUDX is beyond me. Unless of course we have rich individual investors. Or it will really help to know which progressive 401k plan has PAUIX in it. I really plan to hold PGMDX and PAUDX in this IRA for life. In fact it will not be sold before I die. Which is the same the same way of saying I'll hold it till either I die or management on the funds changes, whatever comes sooner.

mrc70

VF,

Some Online trading companies offer PIMCO institutional funds as TF funds for no minimum to a very small amount. TDA is an example where I hold PCRIX.

Bitzer

@mrc70 Thanks!

@VintageFreak Is there a policy on this board as to which share class of mutual funds should be referenced in postings? If so, kindly advise and accept my apologies.

AndyJ

Reply to @VintageFreak: A lot of people own Pimco I-shares at Vanguard, where the minimum investment is $25k. I hope that doesn't make an investor rich.

VintageFreak

Reply to @Bitzer: Dude...I'm speechless.

VintageFreak

Reply to @AndyJ: I don't know about rich, but anyone who can plonk down $25K in ONE fund has GUTs.

BobC

Alternative funds can include a whole range of things. We use equity long-short, bond long-short, precious metals, absolute return, and dynamic allocation. We could also include commodities, managed futures, and arbitrage. MFLDX, LAYSX, CEF, EIGMX, PAUIX, IVAEX and others fill out our bucket, depending on the client. We also have AQMNX, DBC, DBA, ARBNX, GSMMX, and others should we feel the need for them.

MikeM

Reply to @VintageFreak: I use ticker PAUIX because that's what I own. This class has a $2000 minimum within my plan. I think it has become fairly common for larger employee 401k plans to offer brokerage accounts. My 401k uses T.Rowe Price, which gives me thousands of funds to choose from. I have access to institutional class funds.